The beautiful and stately tree of yoga has eight powerful branches that define the essence of the process of yoga. They are guidelines on how to live a vital and meaningful life. In the Yoga Sutras (”threads”) Patanjali comments on ashtanga yoga (ashta: eight and anga: limb).
1. Yamas - Moral Restraints
- Ahimsa - Non-Violence
- Satya - Non-Lying
- Ashteya - Non-Stealing
- Brahmacharya - Non-Sensuality
- Aparigraha -Non-Greed
- Saucha - Cleanliness
- Santosha - Contentment
- Tapasya - Austerity
- Swadhyaya - Self-Study
- Ishwara Pranidana - Devotional Surrender
4. Pranayama - Energy control, extension of life force.
5. Pratyahara - Interiorization of the mind, sensory withdrawal.
6. Dharana - One-pointed concentration, on a single object.
7. Dhyana - Absorption/true meditation, uninterrupted flow of concentration.
8. Samadhi - Union with the infinite Effulgence, beyond what is understood as consciousness.